


...When You Least Expect It

by AniRay



Series: There Love Will Be [2]
Category: Peaky Blinders (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Family Feels, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-12
Updated: 2020-08-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:54:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25824697
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AniRay/pseuds/AniRay
Summary: Time heals all wounds. Love finds a way.Just...not for everyoneA little companion piece set a year after 'Where You Least Expect It...' ends.
Relationships: Tommy Shelby/Lizzie Stark
Series: There Love Will Be [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1873810
Comments: 6
Kudos: 30





	...When You Least Expect It

It should have been harder.

Driving through the gates of Arrow House, there should have been some trepidation or uncertainty. But there was none. Even sixteen months after leaving- a year since the divorce was finalized. Yet, it still felt like home. It was still her home. _And now,_ she prayed, _things can go back to how they should be._

Grace had known when she left that Thomas would be hurt. She had known that coming back would be hard. And she had no doubt that he would try to push her away at first. It was simply the way that Thomas protected himself. But she had worked hard to be able to make this drive. And she _loved_ him.

God, she loved him.

It was almost impossible to her, now, to think that she might have ever stopped. It was impossible to her that there was a time when she _didn’t know_ if she loved her husband. But there was no doubt now. She loved Thomas. She was ready to return to their life. And she was ready to be the mother to his child- _their_ child.

It had taken months of counseling and self-reflection. It had taken tears and anger and countless nights forcing herself to remember that it wasn’t Ruby’s fault. It wasn’t even Lizzie’s fault. That the pain Grace had felt the day Ruby was born had been from her own insecurities and her own disappointments, not from any wrong someone had done to her. She hadn’t seen it then, but she knew it now.

So yes, she was ready to be the mother that little girl needed and deserved. She was ready to love her whole heartedly and without a trace of reserve. And if- _when-_ Thomas let her back into his life and his heart, she would never walk away from either of them again.

Pulling to a stop in front of the door, Grace looked at the house Thomas had bought her. That same thrill of excitement and joy rushed through her- a feeling she hadn’t had in so very long. One that had been familiar and welcome to her before…everything. Taking a deep breath, she parked the car and got out. Her head was high as she made her way to the door. Her steps were light but determined.

Her mind went back to the news articles and gossip magazines she’d skimmed online or in the checkout queue in the grocery store. The divorce had been private, but somehow news still got out. And since then Thomas had not been seen with any women. Not at fundraisers or the annual Shelby Company Ltd. Gala. There had been no glimpses of Lizzie Stark or anyone else in his life since Grace had left it. Further proof that he hadn’t moved on any more than Grace had.

It made her smile.

She knocked on the door. A moment later the sound of footsteps reached her and Grace forced her smile to dim slightly, allowed the nerves she felt at seeing Thomas shine in her eyes. Because despite her hope and his lack of female company, she _was_ nervous. Then the door opened and nerves fled, quickly replaced by a tidal wave of love and desire. Thomas looked magnificent- strong and sharp with a hint of something feral underneath. All the things that had drawn her to him the first time.

“Hello, Thomas. May I come in?”

He stepped aside, but didn’t speak. It discomfited her slightly, but she pushed forward. He had been hurt and she was the cause. There would be work involved with healing the broken trust between them. As she stepped into the foyer, a woman came from upstairs with Ruby in her arms. A frisson of dread trailed up Grace’s spine. But then she looked more closely. The woman showed obvious deference to Thomas. And when she spoke she addressed him as ‘Mr. Shelby’. She wasn’t his lover, then, just the nanny.

A sigh of relief escaped Grace causing Thomas to return his attention to her. He now held Ruby in his arms. It came so easy to him- handling this toddler. She imagined the countless days and nights that he had needed to soothe or carry this gorgeous child. It made her smile seeing how at ease with Ruby he was, not leaving her for the nanny to handle with no real involvement himself.

“She’s beautiful, Thomas. Though, she always was.”

Her eyes, bright with happiness, found his. The blue eyes that stared back at her were cold and sharp and untrusting. And it hurt. God above, it hurt so much to see. But she would not let him see her pain. This couldn’t be about her. This was about starting the process- mending the wound she had caused when she walked out on him. “Why are you here, Grace?” Even his voice was cold, like shards of ice pricking painfully at her.

She pulled in a calming breath. “I’m here to apologize. I’m here, Thomas, to tell you how sorry I am for walking away from you.” Her eyes went back to Ruby. “Both of you.” Thomas tightened his grip on his daughter- as if Grace were a threat. Her heart sank. She stumbled over her next words, trying to push past the pain that small movement had caused. “I wanted- I want to let you now that I’m ready now. I wasn’t before- there was so much about how things went that I didn’t know how to handle. But I’ve spoken to someone and I’ve worked through all of it. And Thomas, I’m _ready_. Ready to be your wife again. Ready to be this little angel’s mother.”

He was expressionless. His lips thinned and Grace didn’t let herself ascribe an emotion to that response. From the corner of her eye she saw Arthur standing in the doorway to Thomas’ office. He was glaring at her- but that didn’t mean anything. The Shelbys had never welcomed her into their ranks, anyway. “You’re ready?” The sharp cut of Thomas’ voice brought her focus back to him. She nodded. “You talked to someone, eh?”

“Yes, Thomas-“

“And now you think you can come back?” She flinched at the emptiness, the complete lack of feeling- in his voice. He turned to his brother. “Hear that, Arthur? She wants to come back.” His brother snorted in mocking amusement. Thomas’ lips curled into a smile. But, oh, it was not the smile she loved. No, this smile was cruel and mocking, and designed to etch pain into her very bones. “I don’t need you, Grace. _Ruby_ doesn’t need you. The best choice you’ve ever made in regards to my daughter was leaving. And the best choice I made regarding you was signing those papers you left behind.”

“Thomas I-“ But her words were choked. There were tears stinging her eyes- falling onto her cheeks. This was not the Thomas she knew. No- she knew this man, but only within the boardroom. Only with those lesser than he. “I didn’t mean- I was just-“ But the words, they wouldn’t come. There were no words that she knew that could combat the pain she was in or the anger that he exuded. She was speechless in her devastation.

“Go back where you came from, Grace. You aren’t wanted here.”

Just then, as her heart felt at its most shattered, the front door opened. Grace turned. And there she was- Lizzie Stark. Her arms were linked with Ada and Esme. Polly was behind the three, a warm smile on her graceful countenance. It was a smile that reached her eyes. One that had never appeared when Grace was living in this house. Lizzie saw her first. She jerked to a stop, nearly making Esme trip and Grace was sure Polly almost walked into the back of them.

“I know! I swear, Liz, he was-” Ada stopped talking, eyes going wide when they landed on Grace. The smile on Polly’s face grew cold, then disappeared. Esme’s hand tightened around Lizzie’s arm. _Closing ranks._ God, they were closing ranks around her- around _Lizzie Stark_. “What the fuck is she doing here, Tom?” Grace forced a smile. Ada was never one to beat around the bush when she was displeased.

She didn’t look away from Lizzie and Lizzie didn’t look away from her. But Grace saw Thomas shrug- as if he truly had no clue why Grace was there. As if she hadn’t just told him she wanted their marriage back. As if she hadn’t offered to love and raise his daughter as her very own. She forced that pain down.

“Mama!”

All eyes went to little Ruby. Her green eyes were alight with joy. Her little hands were held out, reaching towards Lizzie. She leaned forward a bit too much, and Grace watched as Thomas quickly corrected his hold, so she wouldn’t fall- a small smile coming to his lips as he did. She turned back to Lizzie. She had moved away from Ada and Esme, though they followed close behind her. She stopped at Thomas’ side, pulled Ruby into her arms and nuzzled her little neck.

Thomas watched. And the image he made in that moment killed any hopes that Grace might have still been holding on to. Because he was looking at Lizzie with such pure, unfettered love that it broke Grace’s heart. There was adoration etched into every line of his face. And the blue of his eyes, so cold and harsh only moments ago, was now warm and inviting as a playful ocean.

He had never- in all their years together- looked at Grace the way he was looking at Lizzie.

She took a stumbling step back. Then she took a deep breath, though it did nothing to ease the tightness bearing down on her chest. She took another step back, then another, until she was almost to the front door. Cold fingers wrapped around her upper arm. Sharp nails dug into the soft flesh there. But Grace could hardly feel it through the agony she was currently in.

But she heard every word that Polly hissed into her ear. “You were never a Shelby.” She clenched her jaw. “You never will be.” She tried to find the defiance that had shielded her from Polly before. She couldn’t. “And I’ll cut you- from your navel all the way to your pretty little rich girl nose- if you come near me and mine again.” She sucked in a sharp, gasping breath. “And that means Lizzie and Ruby, too.”

Then the hand was gone.

Grace stumbled through the open door and out into the sunshine.

She collapsed into her car.

She drove and she didn’t look back.


End file.
